You're Under Arrest! War Zone
by Gene Akizuki
Summary: Natsumi and Miyuki will face the greatest challenge of their police career as they go up against a group of mercenary killers that are tearing Tokyo apart. With apperances of characters from Ghost in the Shell, Gunsmith Cats, and other cameos.
1. Chapter 1

FILE 1

"Congratulations, Officer Saori Saga," Chief Daizaburo Tokumaru said after he pinned the gold and silver badge of the Japan National Police on the uplift chest of Saori. The petite young woman becomes the newest addition to the Bokuto Police Station. Tokumaru saluted, which Saori crisply returned.

Officers Natsumi Tsujimoto, Miyuki Kobayakawa, Yoriko Nikaido and Aoi Futaba, as well as other police officers, witnessed the simple ceremony inside the conference room of the station. They all smiled and clapped happily as their long-time friend become one of their own.

"I knew she'll become a cop one day," Natsumi whispered to Miyuki.

"Thanks to us," agreed Miyuki. "After all the troubles she caused us while she is still a student, I'm really happy to see her find her calling."

The Chief ceremoniously gave Saori a handgun, a Samurai Edge 9mm automatic, the Japanese version of the popular Beretta Model 92FS license-built in Japan. The gun wasn't loaded, of course, but the Chief still handled it with care. Saori's eyes gleamed as she took the pistol and it took a few seconds before she shoved her first ever gun on her belt holster. The chief offered his hand and Saori shook it vigorously.

Saori went to the small podium to deliver the traditional rookie speech. "I would like to thank you all for this honor, especially to my friends Officer Tsujimoto and Officer Kobayakawa. It is them who inspired me to become a police officer and to serve our city. Rest assured that I will do my duty as an officer of the Japan National Police, that is to protect our citizens and uphold the law, even if it means giving my life. Again thank you very much." Loud cheers drowned her last words.

After the ceremony in the headquarters, Natsumi and Miyuki escorted Saori to the Arms Room, which is also a shooting range. "That was some speech Saori," Natsumi said. "You made us really proud."

"It was the truth," Saori said humbly. "You guys are my idols and my inspiration. It's all because of you that I wore this uniform."

"Hey, if you really want to thank us," Miyuki reminded her. "Stay out of trouble."

"Hey, I'm not a kid anymore!" Saori protested.

The three women laughed.

Saori retrieved two boxes of 9mm ammo and four magazines from the dispatcher and proceeds to the range where Natsumi and Miyuki waited. The two veteran Bokuto policewomen donned plastic goggles and earmuffs as Miyuki started shooting paper targets twenty feet away. The report of her customized Kimber High Capacity .45 caliber automatic filled the room. After burning a full magazine, Miyuki removed the empty clip and inserted a full one before placing the gun back to its holster. "Not bad," she said, removing her earmuffs.

"Excuse me, _sempai_," Saori said as she loads her Samurai Edge. "All of the other cops are armed with nine millimeter automatics. Why are you two armed with different calibers?"

Miyuki shrugged. "Nine millimeters are design to kill Europeans. For dangerous people, you'll need a .45."

"Makes a bigger hole," Natsumi agrees.

"Well, nine is big enough for me." Saori laughed as she shoved the full magazine to the grip of her pistol. She switched the safety on and returned the gun to her holster.

"Natsumi's gun wouldn't just make a hole; it'll blow your head off." Miyuki remarked, nodding at the big gun on Natsumi's belt.

Miyuki is referring to Natsumi's firearm of choice, an Israeli-made Magnum Research-IMI Desert Eagle automatic, the largest and most powerful automatic handgun in the world. Natsumi's Big D is made entirely of stainless steel, and packs the brutally destructive .50 caliber Action Express cartridges. The .50 AE, derived from the .50 caliber machine gun round, is an ultra-powerful 500-grain jack hollow point flesh-shredder that flew at 427 miles per power and delivers a force of 1923 joules. It could penetrate pass an engine block like it was made from butter.

"Hey, I like this gun," Natsumi said. "I could clip a suspect's ear from a hundred feet away…or like you said, blow his head off for good measure."

"You're sick," Miyuki said with a sigh.

Natsumi laughed. "All I need now is a good beer."

"Okay, lets get some," Miyuki said. "You're coming Saori?"

"No. I'm on my first patrol tonight."

"Lucky you," Natsumi exhaled.

11:00PM.

Saori ate her rice cake slowly to kill time. It wasn't that bad, Tokyo rice cakes are one of the best in the world. Her job wasn't bad either. The rookie officer, with her male partner Ryo Kojima is on foot patrol in the urban environment of Bokuto District, considerably a safe neighborhood. Their duty would end at 1:00AM so the two decide to take a short break.

"Hey Saori," asked Ryo. "Why'd you join the force? I mean, you're young and beautiful. You could be very successful in different fields."

"It was a long story," answered Saori. "But to sum it all up, I made a lot of trouble back when I was a student. Miyuki and Natsumi always bailed me out. So I decided to I will become a cop too just like them."

"Those two are causing more trouble than you can ever imagine," chuckled Ryo. "But they always get the job done."

"They're my idols," beamed Saori.

While the two are talking, a white van pulled in front of the Hisashi Research Center, not far from the position of Saori and her partner. The five story building is well-known, for it is the headquarters of one of the largest companies in Tokyo, specializing in fiber research.

And it is the target for the biggest heist in the history of Tokyo.

Inside the van, eight men are preparing for the robbery. All were dressed in all black commando suits, body armor, Kevlar helmets and armed to the teeth with automatic rifles. One of them is not wearing a helmet. He is a large and powerful-built Oriental, with almond-shaped eyes, and shaved head that gave him a meaner look. The man is armed with a short AK-47 assault rifle and a Tactical grenade launcher, not counting his sidearm, explosives and commando knife. The men are all extremely heavily armed, like they were invading a city.

The bald leader knew the Japanese police are not as heavily armed as other police forces, but they can be a formidable opponent especially if they are determined to fight even against overwhelming odds. The plan is not just to overwhelm the police in case of a shootout, but to crush them with massive amount of firepower. Besides, the leader swore to his men that he will kill 20 cops for every man he lost.

"We are ready, Major," one of the men said, donning his black balaclava.

"Good," answered the major. "Stick to our plan and don't make any mistakes."

The door of the van flew open, armed commandos jumping to the streets and running towards the front lobby of the target building. The two security guards were caught by surprise, and the major shoots them both with his silenced Beretta. A commando already inside the building hacks the electrical system and disabled the lights and cameras, blanketing the building in darkness. The commandos are prepared for this; they are also equipped with night vision goggles. They entered the lobby like ninjas, shooting the guards with silenced pistols.

The major and three of his men entered the elevator. The steel door of the research laboratories opened and the scientist inside were stunned when they saw military-dressed men armed to the teeth. "Get down! On the floor!" one of the men shouted in accented Japanese. The terrified scientists had no choice but to follow.

One of the commandos attached a sound suppressor on his Heckler and Koch MP5 submachine gun. He sets the selector on single shots, and then shoots the scientist close to him on the head. One by one he executes the other scientist, shooting then in the head at point blank range. When he got to the last scientist, he stops.

"Nobunaga?" the commando asked.

The scientist stood. "The package is in the vault. Two guards and the head scientist are there," he said shaking.

"Go!" the commando ordered.

"How about my money?"

The major approached the scientist. "You'll get your money. Now go, or I will castrate you with bullets," he said menacingly. The traitorous scientist ran.

The major examined the vault. He noticed the intercom. "Open this vault," the major said on the intercom to the people inside the vault. "Open this vault or you will die!" No answer. He nodded to the commando beside him.

The second commando opened his backpack, taking two blocks of C-4 plastic explosive from it. He placed the C-4 on the vault door. The major took cover as the commando pressed the detonator. The massive steel vault door was ripped apart by the explosion.

The major entered the vault. One of the security guards lay on the floor dead, his body ravaged by the explosion. The other security guard was moaning in pain. The major aimed his AK-47 on the helpless guard and fired a burst. The head of the guard burst like a watermelon.

"Please don't…" the head scientist pleaded, blood dripping from his ears. "Don't kill me…"

The major smiled sadistically and shot the scientist on the groin. The scientist blood curling scream was louder than the gunfire.

Saori finished her coffee when she heard the muffled explosion. She snapped toward Ryo. "Did you hear that?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said grimly. "That's coming from Hisashi. Let's go."

The two cops mounted on their squad car, a Toyota Altis, which Ryo drove. A Remington twelve-gauge shotgun was mounted on an electronically-released pedestal on the dashboard. As they sped towards where the explosion came from, Ryo radios for backup.

Adrenalin pumped on Saori's veins as she checks her Samurai Edge pistol and tightens her bulletproof vest. In the back of her mind maybe it was just an accident or something, not a violent encounter. Yet she was ready for anything. Her training would ensure her survival, at least for a moment.

Ryo stopped the car near the building of the Hisashi Research Center. The doors flew open and the two jumped out, pistols drawn. Taking cover on the patrol car, they surveyed the lobby.

The building is dark, as if there's a power outage yet other buildings at the area are blazing with electric lights. Ryo gave the radio to Saori. "Here," he said. "Coordinate with our backup units. I'm gonna check the lobby."

"I'm coming with you…"

"No," Ryo argued. "Stay here. Cover my back."

Saori nodded.

Ryo ran towards the front of the building. He cautiously approached the lobby, gun in hand. In the darkness he saw two figures on the front door. His blood ran cold when he saw the two dead security guards. Ryo raised the radio to his mouth when suddenly gunfire exploded inside the building.

Ryo instinctively took cover behind a Mazda, keeping his eyes and gun pointed towards the door. "Shots fired! Shots fired!" he yelled matter-of-factly on the radio. At the distance he could hear sirens from approaching police cars. Good, backup is fast approaching…

The door of the building opened and five men dressed in military-style outfit came out. Two of them appeared to be carrying heavy duffle bags. All were armed with huge assault rifles with banana-type magazines.

"Five 211 suspects in the alley on the loading dock!" Ryo shouted into his portable radio. "All suspects 417. Request immediate backup!" He holstered the radio, then took a firm two-hand Weaver combat grip on his service pistol to give better accuracy and stability, crouched as low as he could behind the right front fender of the Mazda, and shouted, _"Police! Freeze! Drop your weapons! Now!"_

Ryo never expected them to surrender—and they didn't. As soon as he saw one of them unslung a rifle from his shoulder and level it, he opened fire, aiming three rounds each at the five gunmen he could see across the street.

He saw them jerk and jump as the rounds hit, but they didn't go down. Two of them leveled AK-class rifles at him. Staying low, Ryo ran up Jinsu Street to a nearby parked car and crouched behind the left rear fender, again shielded by the engine block, seconds before the suspects opened fire. They peppered his former cover car with heavy-caliber automatic-rifle fire, shattering the windshield and blowing out the two left tires, and stopped shooting only when they finally ran out of ammo. The two quickly swapped magazines to reload.

"_Shots fired, shots fired!"_ he shouted into his radio. "Heavy automatic-rifle fire coming from the alley, two suspects with rifles, possibly all five have automatic rifles. Suspects are wearing body armor too. Go for head shots, repeat, go for head shots!"

"Get out of there, Ryo!" he heard Saori yell in the radio. "Wait for SWAT back up!"

Just then, a cop's worst nightmare appeared before his eyes. A lone gunman, looking as if he was covered in a suit of black armor, marched out of the alley onto Jinsu Street with his AK-74 leveled. When he was thirty feet from the abandoned squad car, he shouted something in a different language and opened fire, spraying it in a side-to-side sweeping motion on full auto. Then he continued to march forward, raising the rifle up so he could aim it at anything that moved on the other side of the car. His walk was deliberate, no hurry in his steps, no effort to hide himself—just as if he were a pedestrian crossing the street. Ryo's pistol is no match for full-auto rifles.

Ryo dropped the radio, aimed, and fired five rounds at the guy's head. He knew he was shooting back towards the park, toward Saori and the other units, but it was a chance he had to take—this guy _had_ to go. One of his shots must have hit flesh because the guy went down and Ryo heard him shout in the same language he didn't understood as he clutched his neck and began to crawl back toward the alley.

But Ryo didn't see the bald major standing behind a white van. He grabbed a tube-like device from the van and aimed it at the car protecting Ryo. The major pulled the trigger of the Chinese-made B-40 antitank rocket launcher, a copy of the Russian RPG-7. The high explosive warhead hit the car and exploded, blowing it twenty feet in the air and crashed back to earth, a ball of fire and molten metal.

"Oh…my…God…" was all Saori could say when she saw Ryo's cover, and his body, exploded in a massive ball of fire. Her colors drained but training took over and she grabbed the radio. "Ryo!" she yelled desperately as more automatic gunfire hammered. "Answer me! Ryo!"

Only silence remained above the roar of gunfire.

Saori felt a tear falling on her cheek as she radios a call that no police officer ever want to make in his or her career. "Officer down! Officer down! Code 900! Code 900, Hisashi Research Center complex, heavily armed suspects in front between Jinsu and Kairi Streets!"

As she issued the Code 900—the dire-emergency code, the code guaranteed to get every cop in town headed this way on the double—Saori was watching the alley for any sign of the suspects. But all she could actually see were the remnants of the burning car across Jinsu Street, the one that had protected his friend and partner Ryo Kojima, and ultimately became his funeral pyre. At least Ryo got one of the bastards before he died, Saori thought bitterly.

There were men shouting over on Souji Street, the wail of sirens just a few blocks away. The sounds were reassuring to the young rookie, alone and pointing her gun at the darkened building. All she wanted right now is to be somewhere else. But she would never leave her post until given an order to do so, so she was glad that other officers were responding and rushing to help her. She would just have to hold on…

An ear-splitting explosion blasted her out of his reverie. The walls of the building blew open, scattering a wall of glass and fire thirty feet away. She felt a hard slap to his head, followed by a gust of super-heated air. Her ears were ringing so loud, she thought she might have a busted eardrum. She found her finger had tightened on the trigger of her Samurai Edge, afraid that she might have accidentally squeezed off a round. Squad cars appeared at Jinsu street, but they were quickly fired upon with machine gun fire. Then another explosion rocked the night as the suspect let loose another RPG and the front squad car burst into flames over on Jinsu, destroying the car and sending officers jumping from their cars and scurrying for cover.

And then they appeared: two columns of four wearing helmets and gas masks, led by a bald figure dressed completely in thick black body armor who was firing an AK-74 out onto the street as the columns brazenly strode out the shattered front doors of the research building. The men behind him fired smaller but still lethally-looking H&K MP-5 submachine guns, sweeping both sides of the street with a hail of gunfire. As the column marched down Souji Street, the white van they came in exploded in a huge ball of flame. A closed truck wheeled out of the Kairi onto Souji, moving into position to pick them up.

But they were marching away from Saori, and they didn't see her. She took aim on the closest gunman and fired three rounds at his head. The last man in the right column stumbled, stopped, turned directly at Saori, lifted his visor, saw the squad car parked there, and swept it with a two-second burst of automatic gunfire. Highlighted in the glare of a nearby streetlight, he made an ideal target, and the rookie police woman became a guided system of a firearm. Saori took the shot and hit him square in the face. The man screamed and went down, clutching his face and writhing on the ground.

_I killed a man_, she thought. It was a grim feeling for a first time, but she immediately snapped out of it. Her survival depends on her shooting tonight as the battle is just beginning. Saori was lining up another shot when two of the gunmen in the right column wheeled around and opened fire with their MP-5's. She returned fire, pulling the trigger as fast as she could, rather than aiming, in the hope that her attackers might dive for cover or run. But they did neither. They fired again, concentrating their fire now.

They were coming after her, two deadly assailants with submachine guns, ready to blast her into oblivion…

Natsumi and Miyuki had been taught about the Code 900 in the academy, listened to the instructors, heard the recordings of actual radio calls. But the main thing they learned was never, _ever_ call for one on the radio—it was reserved for someone in a much higher pay grade than themselves. They could call for "backup" or "cover" or "officer needs assistance" or "officer in distress" or even "HELP!" but could _never_ call a Code 900. The only reason to ever call one, the instructors had said seriously, was if the earth was splitting open and all the citizens of hell were flying forth.

But they knew that was exactly what was happening. They saw and heard the rocket explosion as they sped towards the Hisashi Research Center, saw the fires, heard the gunshots, heard the heavy machine-gun fire in return.

And they were both shocked when Saori herself called the Code 900.

"Jesus, Saori, _please_ get on the radio. Say something, girl. Say _something…_" Natsumi mumbled as she drew her Desert Eagle.

And when they heard the "officer down" call, someone was killed or wounded. And with the sector sergeant calling a Code 900 over the air, they also knew this battle had probably just begun.

Miyuki floored the accelerator of her Honda Today patrol car towards the shooting. She isn't accustomed in driving very fast like Natsumi but their friend is on serious shit. Saori is maybe left alone, fighting against heavily armed gunmen firing rocket launchers.

Explosion again ripped the night as a squad car exploded on Jinsu street. Miyuki hastily parked the Today and the two jumped out, pistols in hand. When they heard the automatic gunfire, they knew they are fighting against a deadly enemy. Their pistols would not be enough. SWAT operatives are armed with M-16's but they were only semi-autos; the Japanese police forbid their officers to carry full-auto weapons. Miyuki, however, defies this rule.

Miyuki opened the trunk of the Today. Inside she kept M-16's, shotguns, tear gas launchers, breaching tools, and an M-40 sniper rifle. Miyuki grabbed the sniper rifle and a booklet of 7.62mm ammunition. She slung the long rifle on her back, and then opened a secret panel on the floor.

Two Japanese-manufactured Heckler and Koch MP-5J submachine guns were hidden there. Miyuki got one and passed it on Natsumi including a bandolier with five 30-round curved magazines. Miyuki also grabbed the second one for her and closed the trunk. The two ran towards the shootout to join the battle.

Both are hoping Saori is still alive.

Saori sank down to her right knee. The gunmen were reloading, flipping the big banana magazines upside down to reload from fresh clips taped against the first ones. She aimed and fired again, missing. This time they did not return fire, evidently satisfied that they had scared her enough so that she was no longer a threat. Saori saw them head back north on Souji to catch up with the others, who were still sweeping the streets with volleys of gunfire, covering the closed truck until it could pull up beside them.

_No way!_ Saori Saga shouted to herself. You're not getting away, not after killing my partner! But all she had was his 9-millimeter pistol—no match for submachine guns. But something else was.

She opened the door of their squad car from the passenger side, leaned inside, started the engine, and put it in gear. Then she laid himself across the front seat, left hand on the steering wheel, right hand down on the gas pedal, pushed on the accelerator, and shot forward.

The two gunmen who thought they had disposed of him turned, aimed, and fired, but they were too late. Saori mowed both of them down under the squad car, hurling them up, then under the fender like corn stalks under a harvester. More automatic gunfire hit the car. The windshield shattered. Without letting up on the accelerator, she shifted the car into reverse. Tires screeched. Saori was shoved forward under the dash by the momentum, losing her grip on the steering wheel. With the right front tire shot out, the car looped to the right and crashed into the corner of a building on Kairi Street. The engine died. She was trapped.

Saori looked up. There was another attacker less than ten feet away, his submachine gun raised, aiming right at her, moving closer for a cleaner shot.

Saori hit the tiny switch on the radio console and the electro-clamps released on the big Remington 12-gauge shotgun mounted on the dashboard. Now lying on her back in the front seat facing the approaching terrorist, Saori racked the action, leveled the shotgun, aimed for the face and neck, and pulled the trigger.

_Click!_ Shit, the shotgun wasn't loaded. Ryo, doing an foot patrol job, obviously hadn't thought he needed to bother loading it. In desperation, Saori tossed the shotgun at her assailant. The muzzle caught the assailant right in the middle of his gas-mask lens, shattering it.

The terrorist screamed something in a foreign language—was it Korean? Saori didn't know.

The gunman ripped off the broken mask, lifting his helmet off with it. Saori got a good look at a very young, chiseled face, Asian eyes, square jaw, close-cropped black curly hair, dark bushy eyebrows, and a nose twisted awkwardly to the right, obviously broken. The guy seemed frozen, paralyzed with fear, as if realizing that Saori could identify him. She reached for her sidearm…

… but it never cleared leather. Another masked and helmeted figure pushed the unmasked guy aside, shouted, and opened fire with his MP-5 submachine gun from fifteen feet away, raking the rookie cop with a three-second full-auto burst at point-blank range.

Saori fell bleeding. The gunman approached the unmoving figure of Officer Saga, determined to finish the job. He aimed the MP-5 on her head…

Three nine millimeter rounds hit the terrorist's torso. He fell on the street, feeling bruises forming under his thick Kevlar vest. The gunman swore as he stood, firing his submachine gun on two female cops running towards him. Both were armed with MP-5's like his, but were slightly different in design with noticeably bigger collapsible shoulder stocks. The terrorist fired his own MP-5 while retreating, missing the two policewoman who were covering from car to car.

Another gunman confidently strode towards Jinsu Street, armed with deadlier AK-47 rifle. The two began exchanging furious gunfire with Natsumi and Miyuki.

Natsumi hit the first gunman, saw him fell but stood up and began firing again. "Body armor!" she yelled.

"Get to Saori," Miyuki said as she fired another burst from her MP-5J. Nine millimeter and 7.62mm rounds were chewing the car they're using as cover. "She may still be alive. I'll cover you."

Natsumi nodded.

"Now!" Miyuki and Natsumi both fired simultaneously, exchanging gunfire with the two assailants. Natsumi ran towards Saori's shot-out patrol car while firing in full auto. They forced the two terrorist to cover while reloading. Two more gunmen were approaching; laying cover fire with AK-47's loaded with huge 100-round drum magazines.

Natsumi reached the squad car. Using her superhuman strength, she opened the driver side door and pulled Saori's body out. Blood covered her face and uniform, with at least a dozen rounds embedded on her vest. Natsumi felt her neck, there was still a pulse. Saori is barely hanging alive.

Autofire hammered the squad car. Natsumi ducked and pulled her Desert Eagle. Kevlar of no Kevlar, no body armor in the world could stop a .50 Action Express round. Laying the ramp sight on the head of the AK-armed terrorist, Natsumi squeezed off a round. The Desert Eagle roared, a raging 500-grain super heavyweight hollow point round smashed on his head, splitting his Kevlar helmet and exploding the head into a bloody balloon.

They shouted in panic at seeing their comrade die, raking Natsumi's cover in full auto. Natsumi cowered, covering Saori with her body. The terrorist however forgot about Miyuki.

Miyuki puts down her submachine gun and unslung the M-40 from her back. She inserted three .308 caliber rounds on the built-in magazine, unfolded the bipod and used the hood of the car as a bench rest. She pulled the bolt, chambering a round and sighted the gunman with the biggest threat, the one armed with a drum-fed AK. The crosshairs of the Leupold scope was dead center on the terrorist's unprotected neck. Miyuki pulled the trigger. The terrorist fell, a fountain of blood bursting from his ravaged throat.

The policemen were now pushing forward and taking ground, forcing the gunmen to retreat to their truck. They took all their dead and wounded, which is more practical than sentimental. They don't want to be identified. The police kept firing, receiving return fire in an exchange of furious gunfire. After a few seconds, the gunmen stopped firing. Thinking the enemy had run out of bullets or the will to fight, the policemen attacked towards them. But the terrorist still have a few surprises on their sleeves.

A large American SUV appeared from Jinsu Street, backwards on the cops. The tailgate of the SUV opened, with a terrorist armed with a Browning M-2HB .50 caliber machine gun. The machine gun fired, taking out three cops, 700-grain slugs blasting their bodies into large chunks. Two more were wounded and fell, and were shot dead by other terrorists.

"Bastards!" Miyuki said angrily, seeing officers mowed in cold blood. She sighted the man firing the machine gun. With one shot, she nailed the terrorist in the forehead. The machine gun fell silent.

The terrorist mounted on the truck and threw grenades on the streets. Explosions after explosions ripped into the complex, smoke covering their escape. Natsumi stood and fired her Desert Eagle on the fleeing vehicles until she burned a whole magazine. The truck and SUV was out of sight when the smoke dissipates. Police cars chased the gunmen's getaway vehicles.

Miyuki ran towards her and checks Saori. "We need an ambulance here now!" she yelled on the radio.

"This is not over, you bastards," Natsumi swore.


	2. Chapter 2

FILE 2

Over two thousand cops from hundreds of departments and agencies throughout the Japan snapped to attention and saluted as the nine caskets carrying the dead Tokyo Police officers were carried into Blessed Sacrament Cathedral in downtown Bokuto district for the memorial service. An estimated one thousand spectators came out in the blustery cold to join the officers and watch the solemn procession. Led by two uniformed officers playing bagpipes, another thousand mourners, including the mayor of Tokyo, two senators, all the local congressional, Diet representatives, and state senate members, and the chief of police of Tokyo, followed behind the caskets and took seats inside the cathedral as they were placed before the altar. Six of the dead cops are not Christians but their families allowed the memorial service in the church for maximum exposure. Each casket was draped with an Japanese flag, with the officer's service cap, badge, and nightstick placed on top.

The service had just begun when there was a rustle of surprised voices in the back of the church. Heads turned to watch as a bandaged young woman in a wheelchair rolled down the long aisle. Two uniformed police women were pushing the chair, positioned it beside the casket on the left, and the young woman laid her right hand on the flag. Then she sat quietly, his eyes on the altar.

Amid the rising murmur in the cathedral, the chief of police of the city of Tokyo rose from his seat in a front pew and walked over to the wheelchair. As usual, Asako Kurokawa was wearing a dark suit rather than his chief's uniform, and like most of the higher-ranking politicians attending the funeral, he had a bulletproof vest underneath his jacket.

"Hold it," Kurokawa said in a low voice. "What's going on here?"

The young woman in the wheelchair looked up at the chief through swollen eyes. Her head, neck, torso, left arm and shoulder, and right leg were wrapped in bandages, but her uniform tunic was draped over her shoulders, with all insignia and devices removed except for the shoulder patches and her silver badge, which had a black band affixed diagonally over it. She saluted the chief, then looked up at the woman who had pushed the wheelchair.

"Sir, Officer Saori Saga requests permission to stay by her partner," Natsumi Tsujimoto said, her voice almost a whisper.

"She's Saga?" the chief sputtered. His face went white as the name registered. "Wasn't she shot?" He was confused and embarrassed. There were so many wounded, so many press conferences, so much to do trying to track down the suspects, that Kurokawa had not yet visited the hospital to see his injured officers.

"Officer Saga, you should be in the hospital," Kurokawa said.

The murmur of voices in the cathedral grew louder. When Kurokawa looked up he saw a sea of faces looking at him. The sympathy for the officer in the wheelchair was visible on the faces of the VIPs seated in the front of the cathedral—as was the open hostility on the faces of the Tokyo, particularly Bokuto Station, cops toward the back.

"Sir, please—" Miyuki Kobayakawa started.

Kurokawa put a fatherly hand on Saori's right shoulder and bent down to talk to her. "It's all right, Officer," he said, his voice sympathetic. "Your partner is in God's hands now. You're relieved of duty for now."

Natsumi and Miyuki were surprised by Kurokawa's response. Why was he denying Saori this simple request? It didn't make sense. "Sir," Natsumi said, controlling her growing anger but raising her voice so more people could hear her, "Officer Saori Saga respectfully requests permission to stay by her partner."

"I'm sorry, but I can't allow…"

"Let me stay, sir," a small voice said. It was Saori. Bitter tears are flowing form her eyes to her bandaged cheeks. "I want to be with my partner for the last time. He gave his life defending me. If you don't let me stay, I will carry the grief of losing a friend and partner for the rest of my life."

"Chief Kurokawa, please let Saori stay." Bokuto Station Chief Daizaburo Tokumaru said. He stood, bent down to hug Saori gently. "Its okay," he said. All eyes were back on him again, Kurokawa realized, as if waiting to see what he was going to do. He nodded and the ceremony continued.

Saori was left by Natsumi and Miyuki as she cries in grief beside the casket of Ryo Kojima. Was there a romantic relationship between the two? Natsumi didn't know but they all knew that Ryo trained Saori when she was still on the academy. The two become very close, especially when they become partners in the field. The loss of Kojima is devastating to Saori, especially that he died in a very brutal assault. Nothing was left of his body except from a few grams of ash that was place inside an urn and in turn was placed inside the coffin. Ryo Kojima died doing his job, a real hero who never backed down against superior enemy firepower.

Saori almost joined her partner in the afterlife after she was shot by at least a dozen 9mm rounds. Her Kevlar vest stopped most of them, but one blasted her right shoulder, her right hand, and left leg, another bullet grazed her skull engraving a deep cut on her head. Her arms and face were cut by flying glass, and the shock of bullets smashing on her vest broke three ribs and bruised her heart and lungs. It's a miracle she even survived the attack, much less go to the ceremonies after only three days in the hospital. Natsumi and Miyuki had a bitter feeling that even if the attack didn't kill Saori, it killed her police career. Her shooting hand is now useless, and she now has extreme nearsightedness, a result of the head trauma.

"Don't worry about her,"Chief Tokumaru said to Natsumi and Miyuki. "She will get through this. She's a brave and strong girl."

"Very brave," Miyuki agreed. "I'd never imagined she will fight like that against overwhelming odds."

The ceremony was designed to move and uplift the listeners. The amplified voice of the bishop of the archdiocese of Tokyo sounded the reassuringly familiar prayers. The music of the organ resonated through the great space. The speakers told of how Ryo had killed one attacker before he was murdered, and they spoke about the heroic but futile actions of the police units as they tried to stop the heavily armed robbers. Inevitably, politics entered into some of the eulogies. There were appeals for a total confiscation and ban on all assault rifles in Japan, and calls for more prisons, more executions, and more funding for everything from the police to education to welfare programs—even a call to close the downtown entertainment complex for fear it might attract further violence.

Natsumi ignored it all. What moved her were not the voices or the prayers or the ceremony or even the organ, but the bagpipes.

When the two uniformed officers played their bagpipes, the keening soared above the utter silence throughout the huge cathedral. There was something about the sound of a bagpipe, Natsumi thought, that reached very deep into the soul. The eerie wails were sad yet stirring. Haunting. That was the word. The sound of the bagpipes mesmerized her. The highly-witty Natsumi knew that for centuries armies of Scotland, England, and even America had marched into battle with bagpipes blaring, the sound inspiring and terrifying at the same time.

As she looked at the coffins, then at her injured friend in the wheelchair, she felt the anger surge in her chest. The wail of the pipes touched a rage within her, something evil, something angry. Her home was under attack. For Japan National Police Officer Natsumi Tsujimoto, the pipes were not a tribute to the fallen police officers—they were a rallying call. The homeland was under siege. It was time to take up arms and defend it.

The ferocity of the assault on the police had startled Natsumi. She knew of nothing else on so drastic a scale within the Japan. From press accounts of the shootout, the guys who robbed Hisashi Research Center were clearly military. They certainly hadn't used pure military tactics—marching out into the open in columns of two abreast with guns blazing had not been used in combat since the American civil war. But their weapons, their armor, and their brazenness meant they knew right from the start that they had the upper hand.

How would the police stop nutcases like these guys? Would cops on the beat now carry automatic rifles? Would armored vehicles replace squad cars to protect against anti-tank rockets? What if the robbers decided to use even heavier weapons? Would the streets of Tokyo eventually turn into a battlefield? Would the National Guard or the regular Army replace the police?

Natsumi could see that Saori, now white with fatigue, was paying the price for leaving her hospital bed to come to the memorial service. She came to Saori's side. "Its time to go, Saori," Natsumi said softly.

Saori nodded. Natsumi pulled the wheel chair and pushed it from the altar to the side door of the church. An ambulance is waiting outside to take Saori back to the hospital.

"Sempai," Saori said while she was being loaded to the ambulance.

Natsumi met her teary eyes. "Yes?"

"Revenge will be sweet."

Natsumi nodded with firm determination. "Yes. We will avenge Ryo and the other cops killed."

As Saori was transported back to the hospital, Chief Tokumaru approached Natsumi and Miyuki, his expression grim. "I've talked to Chief Kurokawa," he said. "He gave the case to the Special Crimes Division."

Natsumi and Miyuki were totally shocked. "He can't do that!" Natsumi exploded. "The attack happened at our jurisdiction! We should be the one investigating this case!"

"Chief said we are not capable in handling such massive threat."

"Bullshit! Miyuki and I took at least five of those bastards, while Saori and Ryo killed or wounded more before they were gunned down."

"Your point?"

"Chief, Natsumi is saying that we can go toe to toe with these bastards and have a damn good chance of winning," Miyuki said.

"Yeah," Natsumi agreed. "We are the only ones who have the equipment and weapons--."

"May I remind you officers that your so-called weapons are still illegal by law," the chief snapped. "You are not supposed to carry those submachine guns and sniper rifles on patrol."

"Let stop being bureaucratic Chief," Natsumi said. "If it weren't for our full-auto weapons we would only be sitting ducks against these AK-totting scumbags. And Saori may be dead by now."

"Save it, Tsujimoto," the Chief countered. "The only reason why you two were not suspended for illegal use of banned weapons is because I bailed you two out. I don't want your careers to get ruined. So you better understand this. We are hands-off to this case. If you two intervened with the investigation, I will personally send you two back to the academy, or to jail."

"Chief, I'm not making any of this up—we can do all of what we're saying," Natsumi said. "But it would be better if you gave me some kind of idea about what we're up against…"

Chief held up his hand. "Stop. Again, I must warn you two -- stay away from this investigation. I would hate to punish any of my officers – especially my best officers –and friends of a fallen cop, but I will if I must to protect the lives of other cops. I will give you a week's vacation. Take a break, you girls need it. Take care of Saori, and leave the investigation to the proper division."

Natsumi and Miyuki have no choice. They saluted the Chief, which he wearily returned. He turned heels and walked away.

"Are you thinking what I knew you're thinking?" Miyuki asked.

Natsumi didn't answer, but her rock-faced expression gave her away.

"Natsumi, I cannot agree on you on this. It's very dangerous. We could lose our careers, or worse."

"I didn't ask you to join me," Natsumi said. "You're free to keep your normal life – if your conscience can take it."

"You are thinking a personal vendetta! This is insane!"

Natsumi snapped her head towards her partner with a look in her eyes so evil that Miyuki stepped back in fear. "You know what," she said, with a mean voice dripping with venom. "The way I'm feeling right now, no chief, no general, and no partner would dare take me on! I'm going out there and I'm gonna find those bastards who did these to Saori and killed our fellow cops. And frankly, I will blow their brains all over Tokyo. Now, if you want to stop me, arrest me and get this over with."

The two partners stood eye to eye for a few second. Until Miyuki broke ice. "Do you remember when we first met? From that day, we are destined to be partners, to be best friends. I swear from that day, I will never leaver my partner. I will go with you to hell if we have to. Natsumi, I'm with you. I'm with you all the way. We will close this case, and get justice for Saori."

Natsumi hugged her partner. "Thank you. We just have to do these ourselves. After this mess, I will bear the consequences and I will face dismissal --."

"No," Miyuki corrected. "We will face dismissal."

Natsumi almost cried. "Let's do this," she finally said.


	3. Chapter 3

FILE 3

Miyuki's fingers danced on the keyboard of her ultra-powerful Alienware Area 51 computer. The sophisticated personal computer, design for extreme gaming, is modified by Miyuki to be used for her home use. The huge 25-inch plasma display is filled with windows of police reports of the Hisashi heist.

"Found anything?" asked Natsumi, dressed only in a white tank top and black panties. She disassembled several firearms and cleaning them.

"Yeah. I hacked on the SCD files," Miyuki answered. "It seems our terrorist friends are not after money, but something more valuable."

"What?"

"Synthetic fiber that is used to manufacture…," Miyuki paused.

"Money?"

"Bingo! As you may know, Hisashi Research center is the largest supplier of paper money sheets for our central bank. The terrorist stole 500 sheets of synthetic fiber. Each one can be printed with 100 bills."

"So with 500 sheets, they could print a million yen in fake currency."

"Or even hundreds of millions of yen, if they print it in dollars."

"And with that kind of paper used by our own government in manufacturing money, no one will know the difference with the real and the fake."

Miyuki sipped coffee. "These guys are certainly not ordinary criminals. They used military tactics. Hell, they may even be from the military."

"Did you try to hack into our military for suspects?" asked Natsumi.

"Yeah. But it's negative. They are not from the Japanese Self-Defense Force."

"This is very frustrating," Natsumi said, laying on the couch.

"You're not even the one doing the techie work," Miyuki said with a shrugged.

Natsumi raised her Desert Eagle and dry-fired it. "Miyuki, if you were a criminal, would you buy a gun from a gun shop?"

"Of course not. The police could easily trace that."

"So you have to buy it from gun runners."

"Definitely. Small time gunrunners could provide some pistols and other small arms, but it would be very difficult for them to supply high-caliber assault weapons."

"So the terrorists would look for the big-time runners."

"I know where you're getting at, Natsumi. I've already checked on the top gun runners here in Tokyo. We'll get results in a few minutes." Miyuki's fingers typed on the keyboard as fast as professional gamers, dozens of windows popped on the screen.

"Miyuki, if you have a hundred million yen, what would you buy?" asked Natsumi.

"Hmmm…a new flat in Roppongi, a Ferrari sports car, and lots of expensive dresses and jewelry."

"If you're a terrorist, what would you buy?"

"I don't know. A nuclear weapon, perhaps," Miyuki simply said. Then the magnitude of Natsumi's question hit her like a punch on the stomach. "You think these terrorists are planning to buy a nuke?"

"That's what I would do," Natsumi said. "But they couldn't buy a decent nuke with fake money, right?"

"Unless you sell your fake hundred million for a few million. You could buy a nuclear weapon in Russia for a price of three BMW's."

"But I still don't get it." Natsumi stood and drank her San Mig Light beer. "These guys are professionals, not fanatics. They would not blow themselves up into oblivion to kill millions of people."

"But they could sell the nuke to fanatics who would blow themselves up into oblivion to kill millions of people." Miyuki saw a new window popped. "Aha, here it is. The biggest gunrunner in Tokyo. We have a file on our own database."

"Who is he?"

"Eiji Hajikota. 47 years old. Lives in a luxury apartment in Ginza. The police are suspicious on his illegal activities but the evidence is too small to prosecute him. One investigator tried, but the flak from Hajikota's high-prized lawyers killed his career."

"Let's pay him a visit," Natsumi said as she packs her equipment. "We only have a week to close this case."

"Yeah," Miyuki said with a nod. "But first, put your pants on."

Eiji Hajikota lives on an exclusive penthouse in a building near Ginza. Real estate in Tokyo is one of the most expensive in the world, and especially in the posh Ginza district, the exclusive shopping capital of Tokyo. An apartment here could cost $ 8,000 dollars a month. Miyuki and Natsumi knew Hajikota had a business, but he could not possibly provide to maintain a high-class apartment from his business profits. Therefore, his money could only come from illegitimate, and illegal, means.

Natsumi and Miyuki used a little police power to enter a building adjacent of the target's penthouse. Miyuki brought some of her high-tech eavesdropping device and a sophisticated machine that would allow them to listen to mobile phone communications. They set the device on the rooftop, unseen by the other side.

"You got something?" Natsumi asked to Miyuki. Both are wearing thick wool and fur jackets to withstand the blistering cold outside. Miyuki is typing on her Alienware laptop while listening to headphones.

"Yeah, I got something. He's making a call. I'm not sure but they maybe talking about a transaction. Wait…the voice on the other line is a woman. She is ordering a few of his merchandize."

"Bet you ten thousand yen, she's talking about guns," commented Natsumi.

"You maybe right. But it could also mean something else."

"You think we are barking the wrong three?"

"Hell no. This is the only lead we have as of now so let's concentrate on this."

"Only one way to find out. Let's follow him."

Miyuki shook her head as she folds her laptop. "Here we go again."

Natsumi drove the rented car as they follow the target's limousine in the night street of suburban Tokyo. The target is heading towards Tokyo Bay. Natsumi kept her distance to the limo to avoid detection. Finally, after an hour of driving, the limo stopped in front of a warehouse-like structure. Hajikota went out of his limo and entered the warehouse.

"Can you listen inside the warehouse?" asked Natsumi.

"No. It's way of range. We'll be discovered if we come closer."

"Then I'll go inside," said Natsumi, opening the door of the car. Miyuki pulled her arm.

"No," Miyuki said defiantly. "Stay here. I'll go inside."

"But --,"

"Hajikota entered alone. His bodyguards remained outside. If my guess is right, he is alone with the woman inside. You are the best shot so protect my back."

Natsumi didn't like the idea, but Miyuki is a professional. She will not volunteer if she can't do it. Natsumi closed the door. "Alright. You go in. But if I heard gunshots, Ill shoot the first man I see."

Miyuki went out of the car and silently entered the darkness. She creeps soundlessly toward the warehouse. Natsumi nervously watches her while aiming her Desert Eagle on the limo. But no one came out and Miyuki enters the building unchallenged. Natsumi breathe a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, she felt the cold steel of a firearm muzzle on her neck.

Miyuki enters the warehouse, hiding behind steel columns and equipment. Her Kimber .45 is on her hands, safety off. She saw Hajikota in the center of the warehouse, talking to a tall woman. The woman is at least six foot tall, well-muscled, almost masculine, but with ample breast. She's dressed rather provocatively, very tight tank tops, skimpy shorts, leather boots and black bomber jacket. Her hair is deep violet, on shoulder level, and her eyes are covered in dark glasses.

The two are discussing something, but Miyuki couldn't hear it. She tried to approached, but there is no cover for her. She searched around the warehouse until she saw a railing atop a crane. It was fairly hidden, and he could plant a listening bug there. Miyuki moves toward the crane.

But it was a mistake. Her shoes snagged a can that clattered on the floor. Miyuki cursed and quickly hides just as Hajikota and the woman snaps their heads on her direction. "Who's there?" yelled Hajikota. A GLOCK pistol appeared on his right hand.

Miyuki prepares for shootout. She could easily take the two, but five more men came armed with pistols and submachine guns. "Shit," Miyuki said, wondering what the hell happened to Natsumi.

"Come out there!" Hajikota yelled again. "Or we will shoot you!"

Miyuki decides to bluff it out. She hides her gun on her waist and stood, hands up, shaking like a frightened girl. "Please," she said sobbing. "Don't shoot. I'm just passing by."

"She's just a girl," the woman said. "Let her go."

Hajikota lowered his gun. "Go. Don't come back here again."

Miyuki nodded and she slowly walks towards the door.

Suddenly, a bodyguard yelled aloud. "Boss! I know that girl! She's a cop!"

Everybody reached for guns.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" asked the man holding the gun on Natsumi's head. He reached out and took Natsumi's gun. She saw his badge on his belt. It's a police officer.

Natsumi found no reason to lie. "I am Officer Natsumi Tsujimoto, Bokuto Station."

"You're a cop? No cop carries a Desert Eagle."

"The hell I don't, smartass. My ID and badge is on my pocket."

The policeman fished her ID out. After examining it, he lowered the gun. "What are you doing here?"

Natsumi faced him. "I told you who I am. Now who are you?"

"Hideki Akizuki," the man said. "Special Crime Division. Are you following Hajikota?"

"No." Natsumi lied.

"Then what are you doing here?" Akizuki repeated.

Natsumi retrieved her gun. "That's none of your busi--."

Gunfire suddenly exploded inside the warehouse. "Shit!" Natsumi swore as she ran toward the building. Akizuki chased her.

In one swift movement, Miyuki pulled her Kimber automatic and dropped to one knee. She laid the ramp sight of the pistol on the most dangerous threat, the bodyguard closest to her armed with a Steyr TMP submachine gun. Miyuki pumped the trigger before the man could use his shiny weapon. The Kimber barked and the man went down with a bullet wound on his torso. A millisecond later and she shot another one before taking cover behind a steel machine. Enemy bullets clang on metal as they fired on her cover. One deformed slug bounced on a piece of steel and landed on Miyuki's lap. Her stomach knotted in fear at being shot at. Fear is no stranger to Miyuki, only a lunatic would not be afraid in being killed. Yet she is a professional and her training and reflex took over so she didn't freeze in combat. It just made her more lethal since she is now fighting to survive.

Before Miyuki took cover, Hajikota aimed his pistol at her and tightened on the trigger. Suddenly, the woman he was transacting with grabbed his gun hand and pushed it up, causing him to miss and drilled bullets on the ceiling. With a speed of a cobra she hit Hajikota with a right uppercut followed by a high kick, knocking him unconscious.

The bodyguards were surprised by the woman's action but they were too slow to take any action. The woman pulled a handgun from her jacket, a compact FN Five-seveN USG automatic equipped with light and laser aiming pointer under the barrel. In half-second, she blasted all three standing bodyguards with two round each. Their body bodies fell on the floor.

The door of the warehouse opened and four more enemies entered, armed with pistols and a shotgun. The woman leaped as bullets hit the place where she stood moments earlier. She landed beside a concrete pillar and scrambled for cover…

…and found herself face to face with Miyuki Kobayakawa and the muzzle of her Kimber pistol.

"Who the hell are you?" asked Miyuki.

"I should be the one asking that," answered the woman.

Bullets hit their cover, forcing them on the ground. "We have to work together to defeat them," said Miyuki.

"Fine by me."

The two women fired their pistols in unison, sending the four assailants to cover. Miyuki dropped her empty magazine and shoved a full clip home. "This is bad," she said.

"Not as worse as I expected," the mysterious woman commented.

Natsumi entered the door of the factory, Desert Eagle in hand. She immediately saw a man firing a pistol at a steel pillar. Natsumi quickly guessed her partner is taking cover there. She have to take action to help Miyuki. Natsumi aimed her huge gun at the man and yelled "Drop it!!!"

The man swung his weapon towards Natsumi. She has no choice. The Big-D fired with a thunderous roar that almost shook the warehouse. Five hundred grains of hollow point lead drilled a massive, ugly crater on the man's left chest. The shock and impact blew his heart and left lung into oblivion, killing him before even hitting the ground. The force of the raging .50 Action Express slug threw his dead body four feet backwards.

The report of the Desert Eagle startled the other assailants, but they quickly seek cover. One bodyguard hides behind a concrete pillar while firing his pistol. Natsumi aimed her Big D and fired six rounds, blasting the pillar into huge chunks of stone and steel. One of the deformed slugs hit the man's face and destroyed his head.

Natsumi retreated to the door as the slide of the Desert Eagle locked open. One of the assailants fired a sawed-off shotgun. Natsumi managed to get out the door as steel pellets hit the frame. One pellet snaps her arm, causing the hair on the back of her head to stand because of fear. Luckily, Natsumi is wearing a thick leather jacket so she was saved from harm. Fear is also no stranger to Natsumi, but like her partner, her professional training and instincts didn't allow her to freeze in combat. She dropped the empty magazine and retrieved another one from her belt. Shoving the 7-round clip on the grip, she prepares for another assault.

Hideki Akizuki suddenly aimed his pistol inside the door and fired two shots without bothering to expose his head or look for targets. Using the jamb as a cover, he blindly fired two more.

"Stop it!" Natsumi hissed in anger. "You could kill my partner with a stupid stunt like that!"

"My partner is there too," Akizuki replied. "It's a calculated risk. The mission comes first. All of us are expendable…"

Natsumi leveled her Desert Eagle on Akizuki's head. "Try that again and I'll kill you myself," she said in a cold, flat voice.

Akizuki tested Natsumi's gazed and realized she is not bluffing. The lunatic could blow his head off with that monster gun, without mercy, hesitation or remorse. Akizuki nodded in agreement, almost scared, and retreated. Natsumi angrily enters the door to rejoin the battle.

Miyuki covered the woman as she reloads her Five-seveN. The weapon is quite impressive. Compact and made almost entirely out of polymer, the Five-seveN is light even though fully loaded. But the most remarkable feature of this gun is its ammunition, the Five-seveN uses the new FN-produced SS190 5.7 x 28 mm (hence the name) round, which resembles a cut-down 5.56mm round of an M-16. The 5.7mm ammo is capable of piercing body armor and Kevlar helmet, but until now some are in doubt of its stopping power because of the round's small diameter compared to the standard .45 or 9mm. Each of the Five-seveN's magazines are loaded with 20 rounds. The woman seemed to handle the gun pretty well. Miyuki was convinced she is deadly dangerous.

"I'll flank them, cover me," the woman said to Miyuki.

"No. I'll flank them and you'll cover me." Miyuki insisted.

The woman suddenly leaped and ran towards a piece of steel machinery. Miyuki cursed but she covered the woman with gunfire from her Kimber. The bodyguard's of Hajikota retreated to their covers as .45 caliber slugs came flying.

Then Miyuki heard the thunderous report of Natsumi's Desert Eagle. Finally backup has arrived. She stood to give fire support to her partner when gunfire from Natsumi's direction sent her back to cover. "Shit," she cursed. "Who the hell is that?"

The woman landed behind the steel machinery and fired her Five-seveN at a steel drum near the cover of the two remaining assailants. The armor-piercing slugs penetrated and liquid came pouring out of the bullet holes. The woman smiled. Gasoline.

But the small pointed-nose 5.7mm rounds didn't ignite the volatile petrol. But something else will. She aimed her gun at the top light fixture and fired two rounds. Sparks flew, the live electrical wire was severed and landed on the pool of gasoline. With a loud whoosh the fuel ignited and the drums exploded. Miyuki, Natsumi, Akizuki and the woman covered their ears as the ear-shattering explosion destroyed a portion of the warehouse. The two enemies are burned into cinder.

The woman stood as flames lighted the inside of the warehouse. She approached the unmoving body of Hajikota on the ground. She checked his pulse, and breathes a sigh of relief when she found him to be alive.

"You okay partner?" asked Natsumi to Miyuki.

"Yeah. I'm alright. Who the hell are they?" Miyuki said, pointing to the woman and Akizuki who is checking the bodies.

"I think they are from SCD. Unless my guess is wrong, we are in deep shit."

The woman stood and approached the two. "I am Major Motoko Kusanagi, Special Crime Division. I think you two are cops, but you are way off your assignments. I would like to thank you two for bailing us out. But in any case, you're both under arrest."


	4. Chapter 4

FILE 4

The prison cell is small, 15 square feet, with a single bed, a stainless sink and toilet bowl. The walls are gray and windowless, but the steel bars on the door provide ventilation and warmth from the centralized heater. The small cell is considerably comfortable, but Natsumi and Miyuki are not in the mood to look at the positive side of being detained.

"This is bullshit," Natsumi growled. She was pacing inside the small cell while Miyuki is sitting on the bed. The SCD commander Kusanagi as her aide Akizuki arrested the two Bokuto policewomen after the shootout in Tokyo Bay. Amazingly, Kusanagi is very calm, or very good in keeping her calm, even though Natsumi and Miyuki blew her surveillance and undercover investigation. But the major refused to talk to Chief Tokumaru while transporting the two and threw the cops inside a cell on the SCD Headquarters.

"Hey, this is our fault anyway," Miyuki said. "We got careless."

"What the hell can we do now?"

Suddenly, Kusanagi enters the holding area. "I will ask you questions and you will answer," she said without preamble.

"We have the right to remain silent," Natsumi said.

"Shut up," Miyuki barked. "Let me handle this."

"What the hell are you doing on that warehouse?"

The wise-cracking Natsumi laughed. "We are shooting a cosplay skit."

"I said shut up!" Miyuki angrily said. "We are investigating a lead."

"About the Hisashi robbery?"

"Yes."

"If I remember correct, this case is in our hands now. Not in your jurisdiction."

Natsumi raised her middle finger. "This is our jurisdiction."

"Officer Natsumi Tsujimoto, SIT DOWN!" Miyuki forcefully orders her partner. Natsumi surrendered and sat on the bed.

Miyuki faced Kusanagi. "We are investigating…because one of the cops who got wounded is a friend of ours. A rookie cop. It's her first night on patrol when the robbery occurred."

"I would assume it's the female rookie, Saori Saga."

"Yes."

"I think you two are blinded by revenge."

Natsumi shot from her seat like a rocket. "You're damn right we want revenge!"

Kusanagi held her hand. "Although I disagree with your goal and your investigation is illegal, I have to say you two are impressive in combat. I could use you two. But you have to operate below the radar, under my command."

"Technically, we are on vacation," Miyuki mentioned.

"Well technically," Kusanagi lighted a cigarette. "You two are now part of SCD."

Miyuki and Natsumi looked at each other in disbelief.

Kusanagi led Miyuki and Natsumi inside the SCD investigation center. The two were surprised when they saw the ultra-modern computers and equipment, and SCD men and women busy at work. It seems all of them are focused on searching for the Hisashi robbers, no one paid attention to the two newcomers.

"Major," Miyuki asked. "What's the progress of your investigation?"

"Well, not really well. I mean, these men are clearly pros. They did not leave any noticeable traces. And they used heavy weaponry."

"We know that," Natsumi interjected. "We were there."

"Clearly, these guys are either military or had military training. But that's the only lead that we have."

"Hajikota is maybe our last and only chance in finding these bastards."

"But first," Kusanagi said. "You may need your guns back. Come with me and I'll show you something."

She led them to a steel door on the far corner of the center. Kusanagi dialed the correct lock combination, and the door soundlessly opened. The three stepped inside.

Inside the armored room is a huge gun arsenal. The walls were adorned with racks of weaponry; pistols, rifles, submachine guns and other stuff like cleaning supplies, tools and ammo. Some firearms are old flintlocks and muskets, while others look like they were beamed from the 25th century. Cabinets and drawers are also present, as well as a worktable. Miyuki and Natsumi blinked, feeling they had just stepped inside a gun factory.

A lone young lady was busy working on the table, cleaning and assembling several M-16 rifles. She was a petite girl in her early 20's, with her hair tied in a ponytail and wearing thick round eye glasses. She's wearing an apron stained with grease and her face and hands are also dirty. When she saw the three, the girl straightens and gave the major a salute. "Good morning major!" she exclaimed.

"Good morning, Umeko," Kusanagi replied, returning her salute. She introduced the two Bokuto officers. "This is Officer Natsumi Tsujimoto and Officer Miyuki Kobayakawa of Bokuto station."

The girl shook the hands of the two. "Hello there. I am Agent Koume Kodou, but you can call me 'Umeko', my friends do."

"Umeko is our resident gun expert here in SCD," Kusanagi explains. "She knows more about guns than Gaston Glock."

"I'd prefer the term 'gun nut', major," Umeko replied. "I heard a lot about you two, Bokuto's best officers, they say. You fought those fuckers in that big shootout. Damn good shooting, I'd say. Nail a few of those bastards who were armed with Kalashnikovs. You guys have steel balls, if you know what I mean."

Miyuki and Natsumi looked at each other.

"I'm so happy to meet you two," Umeko continued. "I thought Tokyo street cops are lousy shooters but you two proved--."

"Enough Umeko," Kusanagi said.

Umeko stopped and realized that Natsumi and Miyuki are not sharing the humor. "I'm sorry…" she said embarrassingly.

Natsumi smiled. "Show us your toys Umeko."

Umeko beamed. "With pleasure." She went to one of the gun racks.

Kusanagi whispered to the two. "Forgive Umeko, she is a little…eccentric. But she is the best on her job, and her creations, however weird, always work 100%. She saved my skin countless of times with her flawless work."

"I think we will get along," Natsumi remarked.

Umeko called the three on her work desk. She looked at Miyuki. "You owned the American Kimber right? Very nice weapon, the finest .45 caliber in the market today. I'm a 1911 fan, mind you. But single stackers 1911's can hold only seven rounds on the mag plus one on the chamber, far less than the 15 to 19 rounds in 9mm pistols."

"My Kimber holds fourteen on the mag and one on the pipe," Miyuki commented.

"Well for 1911 fans like you I have something else." Umeko opened a box on the table. Two elegantly-designed Model 1911 .45 caliber pistols sat on foam rubber. They have a shiny, gun metal gray finish, and with curiously pink colored grips.

"I never saw these before," Miyuki said, picking one. "Who make them?"

"I do," Umeko said proudly. "These are my babies, I call them Umeko Specials, UmekS for short. Forty five calibers, with titanium frames and slides, baked on polymer coating and ambidextrous safeties…plus with the option of compensator and Picatinny rails. The best part? Sixteen rounds of hard-hitting 200-grain lead. Also with ten rounds flush fitting magazines."

"Why pink?"

"Its cute," Umeko smiled with a childish grin. She took a magazine with dummy rounds and handed it to Miyuki. "Try it."

Miyuki took the magazine and shoved it on the well. She chambered the round and flicked the safety, which is smooth and silent. She wrapped her hand on the trigger which seems customized and molded for her. She aimed on the sights and smiled appreciatively.

"Try the trigger."

Miyuki squeeze and the hammer feel. "Feels more like a Glock than a 1911."

"You like it?"

Miyuki nodded. "This is way better than Kimber. And I love the feminine touch."

"You can keep that."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I have a many spares. Also available in .40 caliber, nine mm, and .357 SIG." Umeko took a black leather holster from a cabinet and gave it to Miyuki. "This is custom for the UmekS."

Miyuki holstered the UmekS pistol and shoved it on her back pocket.

Umeko looked at Natsumi. "And for you Fraulein, you like Israeli steel. I don't even know why you carry that elephant gun as your service pistol."

"I'm not going to talk about gunpolitics." Natsumi remarked.

Umeko laughed. "Okay okay, I'm not gonna convince you to change your gun, but I can give you an alternative." Umeko opened another case that contains a similar Desert Eagle. She took it and gave it to Natsumi.

Natsumi weighed the gun on her hand. "This is way much lighter than my Eagle."

"This is in .44 Magnum, but I made some special rounds that has the almost the same power of the .50 AE. Oh and also the frame is made in lighter alloys, slide is titanium."

"Can I take this one?" Natsumi asked.

"Sure. I'll even give you a hundred Umeko .44 Magnum rounds."

Kusanagi interjected. "Can you provide us some serious muscle in case we have to fight these armored men again?"

"Hmm," Umeko took a small submachine gun from the wall. "Those guys have serious Kevlar and maybe even fitted with thick ceramic and steel plates. Nine mm's and .45's will not even make a dent on that, and I have doubts about 5.56mm and even .308 calibers in penetrating that thick armor." She showed the subgun to everyone. "But this is the future here. Heckler and Koch MP7, German Special Forces use this. The 4.6mm this baby fires will penetrate the thickest Kevlar. If you need something bigger, you better take this." Umeko grabbed an assault rifle that looks like an M4 carbine. "This is a Barrett M-468, instead of the standard 5.56mm, it fires 6.8mm rounds. I think this is also more than enough to penetrate Kevlar armor."

"Well we have to make sure they will penetrate, our lives depended on it," Kusanagi said, taking a cigarette from her pocket. Umeko looked at her disapprovingly, and she decides to not light the cigarette on a room full of gun powder.

"What should we do now?" asked Natsumi, examining the M-468.

"We better interrogate our suspect, and asked Saori on what she witnessed. She is the only one who can identify our suspects." Miyuki suggested.

Kusanagi nodded. "Talk to Saga, Miyuki. We'll handle Hajikota."

Natsumi slapped the M-468 magazine home and smiled sadistically. "I can't wait."


	5. Chapter 5

FILE 5

In a dark warehouse on the port of Yokohama, the men who perpetrated the daring robbery and shootout at Hisashi Research Center are cleaning their weapons and preparing equipment for their next assault. Their leader, a muscular bald Oriental, is passing time by sharpening his twelve inch bowie knife.

All the bodies of those killed were disposed off, money was sent to their families. The leader didn't expect that they will loose that many men on a single mission, but that was part of their job as mercenaries. They were getting paid handsomely, and if they loose a comrade, the leader makes sure that his share will go to his family.

One of his men, a German mercenary, approached him holding a satellite phone. "Major, you have a call. It's from Deck Six."

The major took the phone and stood up. "Yeah?" he said to the phone.

"This is getting bad major," the voice on the other line said. "You made a big mess in your cowboy stunt at Hisashi. Now the whole country is looking for you."

"We got what we came for," the major replied. "And High Tower is happy about that."

"But it will be difficult for you to slip out of Japan."

"We plan to stay here longer."

Deck Six sigh from the other line. "Have you heard that Hajikota has been arrested? Our contact inside SCD said he was being held and interrogated."

"Does he know anything about us?"

"No. He doesn't even know about me. But if the cops can follow the weapon and money trail, they can trace it back to Hot Rod."

"Your supplier from America? I thought Hot Rod returned to Chicago?"

"No. Hot Rod is still here in Tokyo."

"Will it be a problem? We got what we wanted; we should tie the loose ends."

"Not yet. But its better to secure the package."

The major looked at the window. "We'll take care of that problem. Any more news from our mole?"

"SCD is still on the dark, but he said something interesting. The two female cops that you encounter in Hisashi, they are now working for SCD."

The major gripped the phone tight. "Are you sure about this?"

"Positive. They are now at SCD HQ, maybe they are interrogating Hajikota."

"Those two bitches killed four of my men. I must avenge them."

"You'll get your chance Major. However we must tie another loose end."

"The other female cop?"

"Yes. Saori Saga. It appears she miraculously survived. And she is the only one who can ID your men, particularly your Korean captain."

"Where is Saga now?" asked the major.

"She was on the Tokyo General. My men will take care of her, it would be very easy. Your mercenaries will not be necessary."

"Be sure about that. I don't want any fuck ups."

"Do you need more weapons? I can send you some more."

The major looked around. "Yes. We need more. We are just getting started."

---------------------------------------------------------------

"How are you feeling?" asked Miyuki.

Saori is sitting on her hospital bed; most of her injuries are still bandaged tightly. She was watching the window when Miyuki came, at least now she was smiling.

"I'm fine, sempai." Saori replied.

"That's good. I brought you some fruits and flowers." Miyuki placed a bouquet of red roses on a flower base near Saori's bed.

"They are beautiful."

Miyuki sat on a small chair and noticed a small box beside Saori. She took a look and saw a bundle of personal properties, including a picture frame of Saori in police uniform. Miyuki remembered this was the picture of Saori on her table at Bokuto station. She saw a letter on top of the box, inside an envelope with the seal of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police. "What's this?" she asked.

"Read it," Saori said silently, not averting her eyes on the roses.

Miyuki opened the letter and read it. She was shock by the content. "You…they fired you?"

Saori nodded.

"This…cant be…it was your first night on duty when this happen…"

"HQ probably thought I couldn't serve anymore," Saori said bitterly. "And I guess they were right."

"This is unfair!" Miyuki exploded. "You almost gave your life fulfilling your duty, and instead of a medal they sent you a termination letter?!"

"Don't worry sempai. I will receive my one year salary and all the benefits of an injured and retired cop combined."

"That's not about it Saori! Do you remember what you told us? You said you become a cop to serve, not because of the salary or benefits!"

"Lets face it sempai, with my condition, I cannot serve anymore." Saori looked at Miyuki. "Let me tell you something sempai. When I was in elementary school, I was a shy girl. Bullies pick on me every day, so I learned how to defend myself. I also become a bully. In high school I was known as one of the boys. I always want to become a model or an actress, but when you and Natsumi saved me I found my true calling. From that day I wanted to be a cop, I promise myself that I will be the police officer in Japan." Saori laughed bitterly. "Now, because I fulfilled my duty to serve and protect, I cannot keep that promise anymore. Ironic, isn't it? I have lost a gift, they took it from me."

Miyuki felt a tear falling on her cheek. She wants to help Saori, to tell her that everything is gonna be alright. But now everything is not alright. Saori's world fell apart in one night, she lost everything. Miyuki want to do something, anything, to make Saori feel better but she is also helpless.

"Don't be so sad sempai," Saori cheerfully said.

Miyuki wiped the tear. "I need to ask you something. We need as much information as we can about these killers."

"I thought chief handed the case to Special Crimes Division."

"We are working for SCD. Don't ask why or how, we just have to nail these men. Can you describe the guy that you saw before you were shot?"

Saori shook her head. "I cannot remember, but he was big. If I see him again I will know him. But he said something that I will never forget."

"What's that?"

"I don't know, but he snarled something in foreign language. I'm not sure, but it sounded like Korean."

"Korean…"Miyuki ran some calculations on her head. She stood up. "Wait here, I have to call Natsumi."

"Can you call her using your cell phone?"

"SCD told us to use land lines if possible. I'll be back."

Miyuki took the elevator to the ground floor. She went to the pay phone, inserted a card and called the special SCD secured line. After a few beeps she was connected to Kusanagi's office. "Kusanagi here," the major said.

"Major, can you check your records about Korean military personnel, especially those who went AWOL and probably become mercenaries."

"You have something?"

"Yes. Saori said she heard one of the suspects said something in Korean. These guys' maybe foreign mercenaries --."

She stops when she saw several men entered the hospital lobby. They were dressed in suits and jackets. Miyuki's gut feeling kicked in. Something is wrong here.

"Miyuki?" Kusanagi asked when Miyuki suddenly fell silent.

"I'll call again." Without waiting for a response Miyuki hung up. She slowly walks towards the lobby, discreetly observing the men. She counted six. All are wearing thick jackets.

It was a hot day.

Miyuki's blood ran cold when she glimpsed inside the coat of one of the men. Unmistakably, it's a gun. Miyuki quickly ran towards the elevator. She sprinted on the corridor towards Saori's room and burst inside the door. Saori was puzzled by Miyuki's look. "What's going on?"

"We have to get out of here," Miyuki replied, unfolding a wheel chair.

"Why?"

"Don't ask. Trust me."

Saori nodded. "I trust you."

A few seconds later, Miyuki is pushing Saori on a wheel chair in the corridor. She avoided the main elevators and proceeded to the freight elevator. Miyuki pressed the button on the elevator when suddenly, she saw two of the men appear on the corridor.

The two men pulled handguns with silencers from their jackets when they saw Miyuki and Saori.

But Miyuki is prepared. Her hand reached inside her hand bag, and swung the leather Louis Vuitton towards the men. Rapid automatic gunfire erupted on the corridor, small holes exploded from the bag as small caliber rounds peppered the two men. They fell on the floor, blood blossoming from their lethal wounds.

"Holy shit!" Saori exclaimed. Miyuki threw the bag and brought out her H&K MP7 submachine gun.

"Lets go," Miyuki said, shoving several magazines on her pocket.

The sound of gunfire brought pandemonium to the hospital. Doctors, nurses and patients rushed out in panic. Miyuki wheeled Saori on another corridor and on another elevator. They reached the ground floor when the elevator opened…

And awaiting them are four gun men. They opened fire as soon as they saw the two girls. Miyuki quickly retreated towards another corridor, but it was a dead end.

"Nowhere to go, either we fight it out or we surrender," Miyuki said.

Saori looked at her. "Give me the gun. Get them, I'll cover you."

Miyuki met her glance. "Are you sure?"

Saori nodded with determination.

Miyuki handed the MP7 to Saori and pulled her new UmekS pistol. "On my signal, open fire." She grabbed a fire extinguisher from the wall. With one swing she threw the tank towards the corridor.

The UmekS barked one shot, the special hot loaded forty five caliber round easily pierced the tank and the exploded. Chemical foam fell on the gunmen, they screamed in surprise and pain as the liquid sprayed on their eyes, mouths and noses. "Now!" Miyuki screamed, kicking Saori's wheelchair.

Saori let loose, firing the MP7 left handed. She released all the anger she feels with a vengeance. 4.6mm rounds rained on the gunmen, one striking a man on his face. The others pulled back, but Miyuki closed in and shoots another man on the torso. The gunman fell, his chest a bloody mess. Miyuki picked her second target and blew his head off. One gunman popped from behind and shoots Miyuki but missed, a costly mistake. Saori mowed him down with a dozen 4.6mm tumblers.

Only one gunman survived. He tried to run but Miyuki blew his left leg. He fell on the floor screaming in pain and asking for mercy.

Miyuki nodded appreciatively at the UmekS. "Nice workmanship," she commented. She kicked the gun from the wounded suspect's hand. "Don't worry, you'll get medical attention. This is a hospital, anyway."


	6. Chapter 6

FILE 6

"Well, well, well, we meet again, Eiji," Natsumi Tsujimoto remarked as she and Major Kusanagi entered the interrogation room of SCD.

"Go to hell, bitch," Eiji Hajikota replied with contempt.

Natsumi backhanded the gun runner's face. "How's that?"

Kusanagi shook her head in disappointment. "Natsumi, that's not the way we interrogate suspects."

"Oh yeah? How?"

Kusanagi nodded to an agent in the door. The agent entered the room and placed a laptop computer on the table. Hajikota's eye bugged when he saw the video on the LCD monitor.

"That is in real time," Kusanagi said. "Isnt she pretty? I guess you really know how to pick a beautiful mistress."

"Leave her out of this!" Hajikota cried.

"My best sniper is tracking her right now. If you don't tell us what we want to know, she will die. Simple as that."

"No…you cant do this…"

"Time is running out Eiji. Tell us what you know or she blows away right in front of your eyes."

Hajikota cringes. "I cant…they will kill me…"

Kusanagi raised a radio on her mouth. "Kyosuke, take her out."

"NO! WAIT! I'll speak!" Hajikota blurted as loud as he can.

"Kyosuke, hold your fire." Kusanagi placed the radio mic on the table and eyes Hajikota. "Now tell us."

"I don't know the whole operation, I swear. I was just the go between. I bought the weapons from a supplier in Chicago. Then I sold it all to a man, he is the leader, I think."

"Names, Hajikota," Natsumi said. "We need names."

"I don't know the names. We communicate by code names. My supplier from Chicago is called Hot Rod. She is a girl, a little short, with dark colored skin, like Indian. And she handles a firearm like it was apart of his body. The leader is only called Deck Six. I never met him. We only talk on the telephone and via his men."

Kusanagi pushed a key on the laptop and a mug shot of a prisoner came out. "You know this guy?"

"I'm not really sure, but he looks familiar. I think he was one of Deck Six's henchmen."

"What about the mercenaries?" Natsumi asked.

"I don't know anything about them. I told you I only supply them with weapons."

"Your supplier in Chicago? Hot Rod? Where is she now?"

"I think she is still here. I heard she is renting a warehouse in Ota. I'm not sure, but she could still be there."

Natsumi looked at Kusanagi. "What do you think Major?"

"Lets talked to Miyuki first."

The Major and Miyuki exited the room and walked to the cyber division. "Major?" Natsumi asked.

"Yes?"

"If Hajikota didn't talk, do you really plan to kill his mistress?"

"My sniper is in position. If I gave the order, he wouldn't hesitate. But of course, I wont. I'm just bluffing."

Natsumi breathed a sigh of relief.

"Good thing time is still on our side. Otherwise, I have to do whatever it takes. The end justifies the means."

Miyuki was waiting for them on the cyber room, fingers dancing on her laptop. She nodded when she saw the two.

"Are you all right partner?" asked Natsumi.

"Yeah I'm fine. Saori was fine too. We moved her to a new secured hospital."

"Secured enough?"

Kusanagi nodded. "I have five highly trained agents guarding her."

"So who hit them?" asked Natsumi.

"Not mercenaries. We've been dead by now if it was them." Miyuki said.

"Luckily you took one alive and we are now interrogating him. And guess what, he was identified by Hajikota as a henchman on one Deck Six."

"Code name?" asked Miyuki.

"Yeah."

Miyuki pulled a paper on the printer. "I have more good news. I discovered that the mercenaries had inside help when they assaulted the HRC."

Natsumi's eye lit up. "Spill it."

"There are twelve scientist inside the HRC when the mercs hit. We recovered eleven dead. One is unaccountable. A certain Jin Nobunaga. He was known as the odd one. A loner and nerdy, even for a scientist. I checked his bank records, he was riddled in debt that he will have to work five lifetimes to pay it all up. Before the robbery, he left his wife and kid."

"Looks like he is planning to start a new life, with dirty money."

"Oh yeah. And guess what? Found him."

"Where?" Natsumi asked excitedly.

"He changed his name…and gender. But the idiot used his credit card. It was traced in the red light district of…care to guess?"

"Bokuto?"

"Bingo! Right in our home turf! I have the address now. We can visit him tonight."

"Good work, Miyuki," Major Kusanagi said, patting Miyuki's shoulder.

"Hey, I have millions of yen worth of equipment here. That helps a lot."

Kusanagi nodded. "You better stay here and find the gun supplier in Chicago known as Hot Rod. Natsumi, take Akizuki and visit Nobunaga. Low profile, I want intelligence, not a huge body count."

"I can try both," Natsumi said cheerfully.

"Oh shit," Miyuki replied, facepalming.

"Just kidding guys."

Kusanagi chuckled. "I just hope so, Natsumi."


	7. Chapter 7

FILE 7

"What the…" Hideki Akizuki exclaimed when he saw Natsumi came out of a men's boutique in Ginza. The scene was beyond words.

Natsumi looks stunning as hell. She is dressed in a well-fitted suit, high-sheen alligator shoes, and a black flat hat. Her short hair neatly tucked in, with a few strands of it sticking out of the cap. She definitely looks handsome, like a leading man of those Japanese dramas Hideki's sister liked watching.

"How do I look?" Natsumi asked Hideki.

"You'd pass for a bishonen."

"Thanks. If it wasn't for your boss I'm not doing this."

They rode an unmarked car towards the red light area of Bokuto. The place was notorious for its beerhouses, bars and brothels. But its also infamous for some of its bars that feature women that are formerly men.

Hideki parked the car in front of one such bar.

"So we just have to wait here," Natsumi said, checking the surrounding area.

Hideki lit a cigarette and took a drag, blowing the smoke out of the window. "Officer Tsujimoto, I have to tell you something," he said.

"Shoot. And please, Natsumi would be fine. That officer shit makes me old."

"Alright Natsumi. I have to say…I'm sorry for what happen back in the warehouse."

"Its okay. I know you are just doing your job."

"You're right. I should never risk my partner's life for my mission."

"Let me asked you something. How well do you know Major Kusanagi?"

"Well enough to die for her," Hideki remarked. "I have a deep and utmost respect for the major. She is an exceptional officer and leader."

"I saw her eyes. Those are not the eyes of a police officer. She has the eyes of a warrior."

Hideki chuckled. "You're correct. Major Kusanagi is a former soldier. She is a paratrooper of the JSDF Ground Forces."

Natsumi nodded. "I see. Why did she leave the armed forces?"

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell you." Hideki took a long drag and then flicked the ashes on the street. "Major was on a humanitarian duty in Afghanistan. They are putting up a cell phone relay site when they were attacked by the Taliban. Everyone was killed, except the major. She was captured, raped and tortured for three days."

"No shit," Natsumi gasped in surprise.

"On the fourth day, her captors made the mistake of making her eat a piece of chicken leg. She killed her guard using the bone, stole his gun, and picked one Taliban after another before securing a radio and directing an air strike to destroy the Taliban camp. She stumbled half dead on the US patrol. She was awarded with the highest honor in the JSDF before returning to Japan. It's a miracle she got over the psychological effects of her capture."

Natsumi sat silent. She couldn't believe that Major Kusanagi experienced that kind of horror. She couldn't say if she'll be the same if ever that happens to her.

Hideki threw the cigarette butt. "She could have been a general in the armed forces, but she chooses honorable dismissal and became a police officer. She participated in field work, with more that a thousand arrests and raids. It was obvious that she would be the head of the SCD from the start."

"I see. What about you, why did you become an agent?"

Akizuki chuckled. "I'm a samurai."

"Bullshit," Natsumi mused.

"No, seriously. I am a samurai. My descendants are all noble warriors. They have served the shogun and the most powerful daimyo in the feudal era. I am educated as a samurai since I was seven, and I picked this path to serve."

To serve? Natsumi thought about that. Yeah, they all picked this path to serve. Even Saori. The word samurai itself means "to serve", and it seems all of them are samurais.

A red sports car parked in front of their car. The driver side door opened and a tall, beautiful woman stepped out. She immediately entered the bar, as if in a hurry.

"That's the cue," Natsumi said. She took out her gun from a tiny holster on the small of her back. The problem of going undercover wearing will-fitted clothes is that she canot packed her usual Magnum cannon. Natsumi hates polymer pistols so she was forced to carry a very compact Umeko-customized Colt 1911 with a seven round flush-fit magazine. The slim pistol easily concealed itself on her back, without sacrificing firepower. Natsumi checked the gun and returned it on its holster. She also carried a backup, a tiny two-shot American Derringer on her ankle holster.

"I hate undercover work," she remarked, swallowing a wad of a special gum that will disguised her voice. She opened the door and stepped out of the car.

"Be careful, Natsumi," Akizuki said.

"Wilco."

Natsumi entered the club. No one even tried to stop her as she pushed a large wad of cash on the guard's hand. She enters the dark interior, blinking lights and loud European techno music greeted her. Scantily clad transvestites danced on the stage, with many men watching them close by. Natsumi sat on a table and a waiter quickly approached her. "Drinks, sir?" the waiter asked.

"Yeah, give me a bottle of Suntory…" Then she remembers Kusanagi's big agent named Batou's drink. "On second though, give me a San Miguel Beer. Pale pilsen."

"Yes, sir. Would you like some girls? We have many."

"No thanks but wait, I'm looking for this girl." She showed the waiter a photo of a woman in red dress.

The waiter eyed the picture. "No, we don't have this girl here. What's her name?"

"Hikaru Nobunaga," Natsumi gave Jin Nobunaga's false name.

"I'll ask the others. Maybe they know her. In a meantime, I'll get you a beer."

The waiter moved away. Something was up. The waiter cannot be telling the truth, Natsumi said to herself. She just saw Nobunaga entered the club. Natsumi cautiously looked around. Then in a corner she saw two big men approaching her. Adrenaline pumped on her blood. This is trouble.

"Sir, would you please come with us?" one of the big bouncer asked her.

"Why?" Natsumi asked innocently,

"Miss Hikaru wants to see you."

Should she say no and talk her way out of this? Or should she play it out and hope for the best? Natsumi stood up. "Okay lets go."

The two bouncers escorted her towards a brightly-lit corridor towards the back stage. Suddenly they pushed her inside a room. As she stumbled inside, two more men hold her arms while a third frisked her.

"What the fuck?" the man said when he took out her gun. "You're a cop!"

"Hell no," Natsumi came up with her best acting since she was fighting for her life. "That's for protection…"

The man backhanded her on the face. Natsumi saw stars then she was forcefully sat on a chair. "What do you want with Nobunaga?" the thug asked.

"I am just looking for an old friend."

"Liar!" The thug said, pulling his gun and pointing it at Natsumi's head. "Don't worry, this will be quick."

Natsumi waited until the last second, then moved like a cobra sideways. The pistol barked, the muzzle only inches from her face. Her skin was stung by burnt powder, the bullet grazing her right ear, but that was better than having her head blown off. At the same time, her right foot washed a vicious karate kick, the steel sole of her alligator shoes dig on the thug's groin, crushing his testicles. The man gasped in awful pain as Natsumi grabbed the gun and swung it towards the two stunned men on the door. Natsumi double tap the trigger, ending the first man's life with two 9mm rounds on his torso. She then aimed the gun on the second as the bouncer pulled his own gun. He was two slow. Natsumi drilled a round on the man's forehead and he flapped lifelessly on the ground.

Natsumi pointed the gun on the thug's head. "Where is Nobunaga?" she asked.

"I don't know," he stammered, holding his destroyed manhood.

"You see how easily I killed your friends, and I won't lose a night's sleep by killing you. Now, WHERE IS NOBUNAGA?!?"

"He's…she's…upstairs, on one of the VIP rooms."

Natsumi whacked the man on the head, he fell unconscious. She tied him on the steel girder using his own belt. She quietly exited the room, her Colt .45 ready, a sound suppressor attached on the muzzle. She left 9mm in the room, for her the Brazilian knock-off of the Beretta is a piece of shit and she is more comfortable with a familiar hardware on her hand.

Thankfully, the loud music masked the gunfire, but they will soon discover the bodies. Nastumi will have to move fast. She cautiously climbed the stairs towards the VIP rooms on the second floor. Now the music is not as loud as downstairs. Natsumi saw three doors on the end of the corridor. She took a listening device from her pocket, putting it close on the first door. She heard moaning sounds. She then tried the second. Nothing.

On the third door, she heard someone talking on the telephone. She adjusted the device, hoping to hear the conversation.

"Someone is looking for me, boss," the small voice said. "I don't know what's going on. Those mercs you hired are a bunch of lunatics…"

Natsumi heard enough. She kicked the door open and burst inside the room. The man in red dress was surprised and shocked, but he dropped the phone and his hand went inside his ladies handbag. Natsumi's silenced pistol erupted with a low noise, blowing the bag across the room. Natsumi aimed the Colt on Nobunaga's head. "Don't move, don't make a noise," she demanded, her voice hard and menacing.

Nobunaga raised his hands. Natsumi closed the door while keeping the gun pointed at the she-male. "You fucking bastard. One of my friends nearly died because of you, and many of my colleagues lost their lives because of your greed."

"I don't know what you're talking about…" Nobunaga said.

"The hell you don't, Jin Nobunaga. You think you're so smart, changing your identity, job and even gender. What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"You don't know me and you don't know what the fuck is going with my life!"

"I know just one thing; I will get information from you. You will tell me who your boss is."

"And if I don't?"

Natsumi backhanded him. Nobunaga fell face down as Natsumi took some plastic cuffs from her belt and tied the she-male's hands together. She then tied him on a wooden chair. "Listen to me very carefully," Natsumi said, taking a steak knife from the dinner table. "I don't like torture, and I feel shit doing this, but make no mistake. If you don't tell me what I know, I will cut your fingers one by one."

"I swear, I don't know anything…" Nobunaga exclaimed defiantly.

Natsumi slipped the knife under one of his pinky. "Say goodbye to it," she said, raising her hand to slap it home.

"NO! Wait…" Nobunaga quickly said before his finger was cut. "Okay, okay…my boss is Junichi Kitaoka, he is known as Deck Six."

Natsumi was genuinely shocked. "Junichi Kitaoka?! The anti-crime activist?"

"Yes, he was the one who hired those mercenaries. He is a right hand man of a powerful politician from Osaka."

"Who?" Natsumi was excited, she stumbled upon a very significant information.

But before Nobunaga could answer, the door exploded and three men burst in, brandishing submachine guns. They open fire in unison, spraying the room with lead. Natsumi jumped and fell on the floor, the bed giving her some cover, but not Nobunaga. 9mm stingers blasted his head and body into a bloody mess.

There is no time to think. Natsumi aimed her gun on the most obvious target while on the floor, the gunmen's feet. Forty five caliber knuckle busters smashed on their shins and knees, they screamed in pain and collapsed on the floor. Natsumi fired twice, killing two gunmen with well-placed headshots. The Colt locked back, empty. Natsumi dropped the magazine and took out a spare but the third gunman opened fire with his Uzi. Natsumi rolled away, her spare mag sliding far from her reach. She swung her right leg and kicked the bed, sending it crashing on the wounded man. She drew her backup Derringer and pulled the trigger as fast as she could, firing the dual shot pistol twice. The .44 Magnum Glasers exploded in midair like a shotgun shell, obliterating the face of the third gunman.

On the corner of her eye Natsumi saw more men on the door. She rolled on the floor, scooping the two MP5K's of the dead men. Acting on instinct, she jabbed the SMG's forward and let the trigger rip. At 800 rounds per minute the German-made chatterboxes delivered dozens of 9mm Parabellum death within a few milliseconds. Screams of pain and loud thuds were heard above the sound of gunfire as lead slugs found flesh. Natsumi emptied both weapons, satisfied she killed enough to scare the hell out of the survivors. With one powerful swing she threw one MP5 on a window. With all her effort she jumped towards the window, never minding that she was on the second floor. Glass shards cut her arm but she was made it. Her body smashed on the tile roof, rolling to break her fall. She fell from the ledge and landed smack on her legs, she rolled on the concrete alley to break her fall again. Intense pain gripped her body, but she was glad she didn't break any bones. Stumbling, she forced herself towards the car…

…and found Hideki sprawled on the ground. Blood blossoming on his body, his right hand clutching his pistol tight. Two assailants lay dead before him. Natsumi immediately rushed to Hideki. He was still alive. "Tried to warn…you…but they…" he gasped, blood spilling from his mouth.

"Don't talk," Natsumi said, putting pressure on Hideki's wound. "I'm gonna call for help."

"No time…Listen to me…Natsumi…tell Major…I served well…"

"You aint gonna die here. I'm gonna take you to the hospital."

Hideki shook her head. "Just let me die…like a true samurai…with honor…" With all his effort, he raised his gun. "I am...honored…to have you…with me…in my death." He took Natsumi's hand and wrapped it on his pistol. "Please…Natsumi…"

Natsumi slowly aimed the gun on Hideki's bloody stomach.

"Thank you…See you…in the afterlife…" Hideki smiled weakly.

Natsumi pulled the trigger.


End file.
